System and method for electronic presentations with annotation of preview material

ABSTRACT

An electronic presentation system and method provides multiple display screens for presentation materials as well as permits dynamic annotations to presentation materials that do not permanently alter the presentation materials. In a multi-windowed display interface, a currently displayed slide or the next-to-display slide can be easily annotated or otherwise modified. Thus, the presentation materials can easily be directed to any one of the display screens and any annotations can be saved for future use or simply deleted.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application relies on provisional patent application Ser. No.60/590,340 filed Jul. 23, 2004, and is a continuation in part of theU.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/448,429 filed May 30, 2003, now U.S.Pat. No. 7,058,891 which, itself, is a continuation-in part of the U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/445,322 filed May 27, 2003 which, itself,is a continuation-in part of the U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/153,859, filed May 24, 2002, entitled SYSTEM AND METHOD FORELECTRONIC PRESENTATIONS, which relates to and claims priority from U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/293,179, filed May 25, 2001,entitled ELECTRONIC INSTRUCTIONAL DELIVERY SYSTEM AND METHOD, thedisclosures of which are hereby incorporated in their entirety byreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to group presentations systems and methodsand, more particularly, to an electronic presentation system and methodhaving multiple screens.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

One traditional method for making presentations to relatively smallgroups, such as in an educational or training environment, includes theuse of an overhead projector and view foils or transparencies. Accordingto this familiar method, the presenter has a series of view foils thatare manually placed on, and then removed from, an overhead projector ina predetermined order. While blank view foils are sometimes inserted toallow the presenter to dynamically present material during thepresentation, the presenter is unlikely to annotate a previouslyprepared view foil because such an annotation would likely ruin the foilfor future use.

Recent advances in automation have addressed some of the shortcomings ofthis traditional presentation method. In one instance, a computer'svideo output can now be connected to a projector so that a computergenerated slide show can be shown on a screen, sometimes with animation.However, this introduction of automation does not change the limited andstatic nature of the presentation materials and methods.

Accordingly, there remains a need for a dynamic presentation system andmethod that allows a presenter to effectively and dynamically presentmaterial that can easily be modified and augmented according to eachenvironment in which the presentation is made.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention addresses these and other needs with a system andmethod that provides multiple display screens for presentation materialsas well as permits dynamic annotations to presentation materials that donot permanently alter the presentation materials. The presentationmaterials can easily be directed to any one of the display screens, andany annotations can be saved for future use or simply deleted.

One aspect of the present invention relates to a system for providingelectronic presentations in which the system includes, for example, aplurality of presentation slides stored in a first memory accessible bya programmable computer; a first display screen coupled with theprogrammable computer and having a first video input signal; a seconddisplay screen coupled with the programmable computer and having asecond video input signal; and a third display screen coupled with theprogrammable computer and having a third video input signal. Thepresentation system also includes a presentation control softwareapplication that is stored in a second memory accessible by theprogrammable computer wherein the programmable computer is configured toexecute the presentation control application to provide an interface,displayed on the third display screen, by which each of the plurality ofslides is dispatched for display to either one of the first or seconddisplay screens. The third display screen includes a multi-windoweddisplay interface that simultaneously depicts the current right-sideimage, the current left-side image and an image of the next slide to bedispatched. Using the presentation control system a presenter canselected either the right-side or left-side image and perform real-timeannotation of that image.

Another aspect of the present invention relates to a softwareapplication and method for providing an electronic presentation of aplurality of slides using multiple display screens that provides apresentation control interface on a center display screen; displays aslide, from among the plurality of slides, in a preview window withinthe presentation control interface; receives input via the presentationcontrol interface indicating whether to direct the slide to a rightdisplay screen or a left display screen; dispatches the slide fordisplay on the indicated display screen; and retrieves a next slide fordisplay in the preview window. In addition to the display on theseparate screens, the presentation control interface simultaneouslydisplays, in separate sub-windows, on the center display screen theslide from the right side, the slide from the left side, and the nextpresentation slide to be dispatched. From this center display screeneither slide can be selected and annotated so as to modify thepresentation in real-time.

Further aspects of the present invention relate to providing annotationsand modifications to slides before dispatching the slides for display,Thus, a slide may be marked or otherwise annotated before beingpresented to an audience.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is illustrated by way of example and not by way oflimitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings and in whichlike reference numerals refer to similar elements and in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary presentation system according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary presentation system according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates additional connections useful in the presentationsystem according to the embodiment of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 illustrates rear panel connectors of an exemplary computeraccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 depicts a logical flowchart of an exemplary presentation methodaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary screenshot of a presentation applicationinterface according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates an exemplary toolbar of an annotation application fortouch-screen monitors according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 8 illustrates an exemplary remote control according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary presentation system incorporating asingle touch-screen display.

FIG. 10 illustrates an exemplary multi-window interface according to theembodiment of FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 illustrates an exemplary annotation screen interface accordingto the embodiment of FIG. 9.

FIG. 12 illustrates an exemplary split-screen mode for displaying apresentation slide according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 illustrates an exemplary zoom mode for displaying a presentationslide according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 illustrates the zoom mode display of FIG. 13 after a portion ofthe presentation slide has been selected for magnification.

FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplary presentation control interfacescreen-shot according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 illustrates an exemplary logical flowchart for tracking timelineinformation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 illustrates another exemplary multi-window interface screenaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 illustrates an exemplary display screen listing informationabout multiple slides that include errors.

FIG. 19 illustrates an exemplary interface screen for manipulatingoptions relating to chapters of a presentation in accordance with theprinciples of the present invention.

FIG. 20 illustrates an exemplary full-screen interface display accordingto the embodiment of the present invention depicted in FIG. 17.

FIG. 21 illustrates an exemplary black screen that includes a titleportion and editable region in accordance with the principles of thepresent invention.

FIG. 22 illustrates an exemplary slide with two different types ofhighlighted regions in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIGS. 23 and 24 illustrate exemplary slides with different annotationfeatures available within embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 25 illustrates an exemplary interface screen displayingtime-related information about a presentation in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 26 illustrates an exemplary timer screen in accordance withprinciples of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerousspecific details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the present invention. It will be apparent, however, toone schooled in the art that the present invention may be practicedwithout these specific details. In other instances, well-knownstructures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoidunnecessarily obscuring the present invention.

Various embodiments of the present invention are presented and discussedbelow. In particular, many embodiments are described in reference to thespecific environment of instructional or training presentations. Thisspecific environment is helpful in describing many of the aspects of thepresent invention. However, the present invention is not limited to onlythis specific environment, but rather contemplates within its scopeother presentation environments in which multiple screens and dynamicannotation capability are beneficial.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary presentation system 100 according to oneembodiment of the present invention. According to this embodiment, acomputer system 106 controls the data flows and presentation materialsused by the other components. In particular, the computer 106 provides agraphical interface 122 on the monitor 104 to assist the presenter incontrolling a presentation. The video data displayed on the interfacemonitor 104 is provided by video output 116 b of the computer 106.Although not shown in its entirety, computer system 106 is aconventional system in that it comprises a keyboard, mass storagedevices, and network, parallel, and serial interfaces as well as themany other peripherals and components known to be part of a typicalcomputer system.

The computer system 106 also includes separate video outputs 116 a, 116c that respectively provide video output to the left-hand projector 114a and right-hand projector 114 b. The video output can be SVGA formattedvideo signals as well as other conventional video formats. Within thepresent description, the left/right hand convention is from theperspective of the presenter. The video data that is output over each ofthe video outputs 116 a, 116 c is determined by the presenter using theinterface 122. Using the interface 122, the presenter retrievespresentation material from storage (not shown) accessible by thecomputer system 106 and then directs that material to one, or both, ofthe video outputs 116 a, 116 c. The projectors 114 a, 114 b then displaythe respective presentation materials on a respective screen 102 a, 102b.

The video outputs 116 a, 116 c, in addition to being directed toprojectors 114 a, 114 b, also are directed via respective paths 118 a,118 b to touch-screen monitors 110 a, 110 b. In practice, the monitors110 a, 110 b would be located near the presenter while the screens 102a, 102 b would be located for convenient viewing by an audiencereceiving the presentation. Each of the touch-screen monitors 110 a, 110b are connected to the computer system 106. In FIG. 1, these connections120 a, 120 b are depicted as serial connections, but other functionallyequivalent feedback connection paths are contemplated by the presentinvention as well. These connection paths can be other types ofinput/output protocols and hardware and are not limited to RS-232 serialcommunication paths. The connections 120 a, 120 b are used to providefeedback from a respective touch-screen monitor 110 a, 110 b thatindicates any tactile interaction that may be taking place with themonitors 110 a, 110 b. While FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary stylus 112 a,112 b for each monitor 110 a, 110 b, tactile interaction with themonitors 110 a, 110 b can occur using the same stylus or even no stylusat all.

The interface 122 can be controlled using a keyboard, mouse or otherinput device connected to the computer 106. However; to provide thepresenter some flexibility in movement and location around a room, aremote control device 108 is also connected 120 c to the computer system106 to control the interface 122 as well. This remote control device 108could include a transmitter (and receiver on the computer 106) thatutilizes USB, FireWire, IrDA, serial or many other types of input/outputconventions to connect with the computer 106. Additionally, the displaydevice 104 can also be a touch-screen device that allows the presenterto control the presentation using tactile initiated commands and such adevice will need its own feedback path 124.

Within the exemplary presentation system 100 of FIG. 1, the computersystem 106 controls the operation of the presentation by concurrentlyexecuting: a) a presentation interface 122 that is used to retrieve anddirect (or dispatch) presentation materials to one of two video outputs116 a, 116 c; b) an annotation tool for the left-hand screen 102 a thatreceives tactile feedback from a touch-screen monitor 110 a and adjuststhe video output 116 a accordingly; and c) an annotation tool for theright-hand screen 102 b that receives tactile feedback from atouch-screen monitor 110 b and adjusts the video output 116 caccordingly.

Within the embodiment just described, as well as other embodimentsdescribed herein, the exemplary components are not intended to limit thescope of the present invention. For example, the touch-screen monitors110 a, 110 b can include LCD display panels or other types of displays;and the computer 106 does not necessarily have to be physically locatedwith the other components but can be connected through network or otherlonger-range cabling techniques to the various other components of thepresentation system 100.

FIG. 2 illustrates another exemplary presentation system 200 accordingto another, more preferred embodiment of the present invention. Thesystem 200 utilizes many conventional components to achieve theinventive presentation systems and methods described below. For example,the video switch 240 can be a conventional, controllable 4×4 videoswitch that includes its own driver software and application programminginterface (API) routines for easy integration. Similarly, the monitors212, 238, 234 can be conventional touch-screen monitors that includetheir own driver software and calibration routines that easily integratewith other components of the system 200. Modern operating systems, suchas the one executing on computer 204 typically allow defining ofmultiple video displays so that no modification of the operating systemis needed to support operation and interaction of multiple video cardswithin the computer 204.

Within this embodiment, as compared to system 100, additional videodisplays are possible and a video switch 240 is used to provideadditional functionality. However, because many aspects of the system200 are similar to those of the system 100 of FIG. 1, detailedexplanation of some features are not repeated when describing FIG. 2.

The system 200 includes a computer 204 used by a presenter to provide amulti-screen presentation to an audience using left 232 and right 236projectors. The presenter has available three monitors: a left screenmonitor 234 which shows the material being presented from the leftprojector 232, a right screen monitor 238 which shows the material beingpresented from the right projector 236, and the center monitor 212 whichprovides a graphical user interface to the presentation softwareapplication running on the computer 204.

In the exemplary system 200, there is also a demonstration computer 216,demonstration monitor 202, and video splitter 214. The video splitter214 provides the video output 218 from the demonstration computer 216 toboth the demonstration monitor 202 and the video switch 240. Thedemonstration computer 216 is typically under the control of thepresenter and can be used to create simulations and other demonstrationsthat further augment or explain the presentation materials being viewedby an audience. Consequently, the graphical user interface also allowsthe presenter to direct the video output of the demonstration computer216 to one of the projectors 232, 236 so that the audience has thebenefit of the simulations and demonstrations.

The video switch 240 is a conventional video switch as is known to oneof ordinary skill and can be controlled to direct a data signal receivedat one of its inputs to one or more of its data outputs. As shown, thevideo switch 240 receives at least three video signals: a) 208 (from thecomputer 204); b) 210 (from the computer 204); and c) 220 (from thedemonstration computer 216 via the video splitter 214). Depending on thesettings of the video switch 240, these various input signals are thendirected to one or more of the following outputs: a) 224 (the leftprojector 232); b) 226 (the left monitor 234); c) 228 (the rightprojector 236); and d) 230 (the right monitor 238).

Similar to the system 100 described before, the system 200 of FIG. 2provides a presentation system that allows a presenter to use agraphical user interface that executes on computer 204 and displays onthe center monitor 212. This user interface permits the presenter toretrieve presentation materials, preview them on the center monitor 212and then dispatch the materials to either the left projector 232, theright projector 236, or both. To control what is presented to theaudience, the presenter uses the interface to send materials out of oneof two video outputs 208, 210 and to configure the video switch 240 todirect its different video inputs to appropriate video outputs.

As shown in FIG. 3, the serial path 310 is one exemplary method for thecomputer 204 to selectably configure the video switch 240. Inparticular, using the communications link 310, the presenter interactswith the presentation system software to send a command from thecomputer 204 to the video switch 240. Based on this command, the videoswitch 240 controls the coupling between video inputs and outputs.

The right monitor 238, left monitor 234, and the center monitor 212 in apreferred embodiment are all touch-screen monitors. In addition, thecomputer 204 is executing three instances of an annotation tool (e.g., asoftware application) wherein each instance of the annotation toolallows modification or augmentation of the video data displayed on arespective one of the monitors 212, 234, 238. This augmented video datais overlaid onto any presentation slides that are currently beingdisplayed. As shown in FIG. 3, these monitors are connected torespective inputs of the computer 204. The exemplary feedback paths304-308 of FIG. 3 are shown as serial communication paths that provideresponses to the computer 204 that are dependent on tactile interactionwith a respective touch-screen monitor. The feedback data is routed tothe appropriate instance of the annotation tools in order toappropriately adjust the video data displayed on the appropriatemonitor.

In operation, the presenter will touch one monitor for example, rightmonitor 238 which brings the “focus” of the operating system to theinstance of the annotation tool associated with the right monitor 238.Using the annotation tool and the touch screen monitor 238 (along withits driver software), the presenter is able to draw such things as text,boxes, free-hand diagrams and other annotations that can be overlaidonto the video data that is being output by the computer 204 for displayon the right presentation screen. Accordingly, the audience has thebenefit of static presentation material that can be easily augmented inreal-time in response to the individual needs of that particularaudience.

FIG. 4 displays an exemplary view of a computer 204. As shown, thiscomputer can include multiple video output ports 410-414 as well asmultiple input/output ports 402-408. The present invention is notlimited to the specific computer arrangement and port types of FIG. 4,but rather contemplates alternative, functionally equivalentarrangements as well.

FIG. 5 depicts a high-level logical flowchart of an exemplarypresentation method according to an embodiment of the present invention.According to this flowchart, the presenter can utilize a system such asthat depicted in FIG. 2 to provide effective and dynamic multiple-screenpresentations to an audience. The method can be embodied as one or moresoftware applications that can run on one or more computers that whenexecuted perform the presentation method as herein described.

In step 502, a list of available presentations are presented to apresenter to allow the presenter to make a selection. Once apresentation file is selected, the method continues, in step 504, byproviding a list of the slides that comprise the selected presentation.Once the presentation file is selected, the presentation system canproceed with the later steps of displaying images under the control ofthe presenter. However, a preloader is one useful tool that preloadsimages and the accompanying data files so that they are cached prior tothe start of the presentation. In operation, the preloader tool may ormay not be used at the discretion of the presenter; however, use of thecached images will allow faster display of different screens as comparedto performing the presentation with uncached images.

The first slide among the slides is automatically presented in a previewwindow, in step 506, so that the presenter can see what the next slideis and decide how it can best be displayed. At this point, the presentermight determine that the slide should be annotated, in step 508, beforebeing displayed.

Next, in step 510, the method determines which of many possiblealternatives the presenter selects for the display of the preview slide.For example, the presenter might select, in step 514, to send thepreview slide to the left screen or, in step 516 to send the previewslide to the right screen. Alternatively, the method can include anautomatic dispatch feature that refers to a preference file todetermine, in step 518, which screen to automatically forward thepreview slide to. Other display options can be selected in step 519,these options can include such things as blanking the left or rightscreen, going back one slide in the presentation, skipping the currentpreview slide without displaying it, jumping to a slide out of order,jumping to a slide from another presentation file, or sending a blanktemplate to one of the display screens. The presenter can also select,in step 512, to display the output of a demonstration computer on eitherthe left screen (step 522) or the right screen (step 524). The presentercan also elect, in step 520, to annotate the slide that is displayed oneither the left screen (in step 526) or the right screen (in step 528).By annotating a slide, the presenter is able to interactively augmentthe presentation in a customized manner appropriate for the audience athand. As the annotations may be useful in later slide presentations andin order to preserve annotations to more than one displayed slide, step530 of the method saves any annotations for future use. Based on thepresenter's selection for displaying or annotating a presentation slide,step 532 results in the next slide being retrieved and displayed in thepreview window. Step 534 represents that the method then repeats itselffrom step 510 until the last slide of the presentation file isdisplayed. The details of this method are presented below in relation toa specific interface and software application for controlling a slidepresentation.

FIG. 6 shows an exemplary screen shot 600 of the presentation softwareapplication that executes on the computer 204 that allows the presenterto control the presentation made to an audience. Graphical userinterface components such as drop-down menus, selection boxes, icons,display windows, toolbars, and manipulations thereof are well known inthe art and will not be described in great detail.

The foundation for a presentation can consist of, for example, a numberof PowerPoint slides arranged together in what can be referred to as apresentation file. Other slide formats are also contemplated within thepresent invention. The PowerPoint files, or slide shows, and theirindividual frames, can be stored on the hard disk drive of the computer204. For example, the presentation software can be set to look for apresentation files in a default directory such as “D:\courses”. Withinthat directory would be a number of different presentation files thatthe presentation software automatically scans and displays to thepresenter for selection thereof.

In one embodiment, the presentation system also permits user-definedpreference data to be associated with any one of the presentation files.This preference data can take the form of preference files using apredetermined extension (e.g., “.ipf”) so that the presentation softwarecan easily associate a preference file with its similarly namedpresentation file. In a preferred embodiment, the preference file cancontain a number of entries having three fields:<Slide Number>, <Direction Tag>, <Memory Jogger Text>

Thus, a preference file could resemble:

-   -   14, R, Mention all three aspects    -   2, L,    -   . . .    -   16, R, Tell joke about the three programmers

As shown, there is no need for the slide numbers to be in numericalorder, although following such a convention may prove helpful undercertain circumstances. Furthermore, there is no requirement that eachslide have an entry nor that each entry have data in every field.

Alternatively, the preference information can be included in slides ofthe presentation file itself. Using the “notes” section of a PowerPointslide, or similar features for other presentation file formats, thepreference information does not need to be stored in a separatepreference file but can be included within the presentation file.

The presentation software interface provides a drop-down box 616 thatassists the presenter in selecting a presentation. In FIG. 6, forexample, the presenter has selected a file named “503-CH00US” which, inone embodiment, can be meaningful and indicate that the presentationpertains to chapter 00 of lesson 503. On the hard drive this file couldbe stored as a PowerPoint file “503-Ch00US.ppt”. In a preferredembodiment, the first slide of a selected presentation is automaticallydisplayed in the preview window 602.

The window 612 shows the 13 slides within the selected presentation fileand their respective titles. One slide title 614 is shown as selected(as indicated by the reverse video) and this slide 604 is displayed inthe preview window 602. From this window 602 the presenter can direct(or dispatch) the slide 604 to one of the video outputs of the computer204.

The monitor on which the screen 600 is displayed can be a touch-screenmonitor 212 but the presenter can also interact with the presentationsoftware's interface using a keyboard or mouse in addition to tactileinput.

There are three icons in screen 600 that determine the destination ofthe preview slide 604. The term “destination” refers to which videooutput of computer 204 the slide is sent so that it is displayed oneither the left or right screen. According to one embodiment, the set-upand cable connections of the video switch are configured in apredetermined manner such as that shown in FIG. 2. The presentationsoftware knows of this predetermined configuration and is itselfconfigured to provide slide to the appropriate video output based onwhich icon is selected by the presenter. The specific cablingconnections can be different than that shown in FIG. 2 as long as thepresentation software is configured to direct video output accordingly.

The icon 620 causes the presentation software to send the preview slide604 to the left screen, while the icon 644 causes the presentationsoftware to send the preview slide 604 to the right screen. If thepreview slide 604 has a direction preference specified in an associatedpreferences file, then the icon 632 becomes active and, by selectingthat icon 632, the presenter can send the slide to the preferred screenbased on the direction preference found in the preference file. Once thepreview slide 604 is sent to its appropriate screen for display, thepresentation software automatically displays the next slide in thesequence of slides within the window 602. The preference tag can beoverridden by using either icon 620 or 644 instead of the automatic icon632. The window 618 is used for displaying any memory jogger text fromthe preference file to assist the presenter with the presentation.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, a slide's entry inthe preference file can have a direction entry such as “LR”. This doubleentry will have the effect of automatically displaying the one slide onthe left screen and then displaying the next slide on the right screenso that both slides appear to be displayed substantially simultaneously.As a result, the eventual new preview slide is two removed from theinitial preview slide.

Slides can be selected out of sequence from the display window 612 andthen displayed in the preview window 602.

The interface screen 600 also-provides a “go-back” icon 630 and a“go-forward” icon 634. The icon 630 allows the presenter to proceed in areverse direction in the preview window 602 and the icon 634 allows thecurrent preview slide 604 to be skipped and the next slide in thepresentation to be displayed in the preview window 602.

The icons 626 and 638, respectively, provide a left screen and rightscreen “slide jog” feature that allows a slide to appear to be slid upthe display screen. This activity mimics the traditional action of apresenter who slides a view foil up on the projector so that the bottomhalf of the foil is emphasized. These icons act as toggles such thatsuccessive selection of the icon flips between normal presentation of aslide and “jogged” presentation of the slide.

In order to focus students on one screen or the other, and foradditional reasons within a presentation, the presentation softwareinterface provides icon 624 to blank the left display and icon 640 toblank the right display. Selecting either of these icons again willresult in the appropriate display being “unblanked”.

As shown in the environment of FIG. 2, the video output from thedemonstration computer 216 is provided to the video switch 240. Thepresentation software can effect the display of this video output to oneof the display projectors 232, 236 by appropriate control of the videoswitch 240 via the communications link 310. When the presenter wants todirect the output from the demonstration computer 216 to the leftprojector, the icon 628 is selected. This selection causes thepresentation software to control the video switch 240 to display thevideo signal 218 on the left screen. Similar functionality with theright projector 236 is accomplished using the icon 636. A secondselection of either of the icons 628, 636 will restore the displayedslides to the respective screen instead of the output from thedemonstration computer 216. A second demonstration computer can beincluded that takes advantage of the unused fourth input of video switch240. In such an alternative, manual control of the video switch 240 canprove useful in selecting appropriate video signal routing.

Using the buttons 650, 652, respectively, the current slide displayed onthe left or right display screen can be added to a “favorites” listdisplayed in window 610. This list can be named something meaningfulsuch as “favorites.fvt” and located in the default directory“D:\courses”. Other file names and locations could also be used.

In a preferred embodiment, the format of the file is:<Presentation File>, <Slide Number>: <Descriptive Text>Accordingly, one entry may resemble:409-Ch05, 14: Free Threadingwhich refers to the fourteenth slide of the presentation file409-Ch05.ppt (for example, if PowerPoint slides are being used). Thedescriptive text can be any text, but the slide title is one usefulexample.

By selecting either of the buttons 650 or 652, a new entry is appendedto, or otherwise inserted into, the favorites file. In a preferredembodiment, this file is useful among different presentation files andis not specific to a particular presentation file. The presenter selectsa slide from the window 610 similar to the manner in which a slide isselected from the window 612. One difference, is that the presentationsoftware must open the referenced presentation file, extract theappropriate slide and display that in the preview window 602. The slidecan then be dispatched to the left or right screen using the icons 620and 644 respectively. Once the slide is dispatched, the presentationreverts back to the slide location within the original presentation filein order to select the next slide to place in the preview window 602.

The presentation software cooperates with three different instances of aslide annotation application (i.e., an annotation tool). The slideannotation tool can be a vector-based drawing tool that generatesgraphics that can be overlaid onto a presentation slide. Each of theseinstances of the annotation tool correspond to a different one of themonitors 212, 234, 238. The execution of an annotation tool instanceresults in an annotation toolbar being displayed on each of thedifferent monitors 212, 234, 238. The annotation toolbar 608 associatedwith the annotation tool for the center monitor 212 is depicted at thebottom of the preview window 602. Using this toolbar, the presenter canannotate the slide 604 before it is dispatched to either the left orright display screens. Each of the left and right monitors 234 and 238have their own associated annotation tools and similar toolbars.

The clock icon 606 opens a timer window that allows a presenter toselect a time period and display a countdown screen that indicatesremaining time within that period. This time period can reflect the timeleft to complete an exercise or the time left until the end of a breakin the presentation.

FIG. 7 depicts an exemplary annotation toll toolbar such as that shownin FIG. 6. The different functions of the toolbar are selected bytapping or selecting the appropriate icon. From left to right, the iconsinclude:

702: A hide/unhide button that expands or contracts the display of thetoolbar.

704: A text function that is used by tapping on the presentation slidewhere text should appear and then using the keyboard (of the computer204) to enter text.

706: A free-hand drawing tool that allows drawing on the slide,preferably using a stylus or other similar implement.

708: A rectangle draw function that allows selecting a starting cornerand dragging to an ending corner to define a rectangle.

710: An ellipse draw function similar to the rectangle function but anellipse is drawn in the defined “boundary” box.

In a preferred embodiment, both the rectangle and ellipse toolsautomatically activate a text entry function so that the created shapecan have text entered without requiring the selection of any additionalicons.

712: A straight line draw function that is used by selecting thestarting and ending points of the line.

714: A “callout” function that creates a text entry box that resembles acomic strip dialogue balloon.

716: A highlighter tool that creates a rectangle on the screen that ishighlighted in transparent yellow.

718: A pointer tool that allows an indicator to be displayed on thepresentation slide at a desired location. In a preferred embodiment, theindicator is a bright red arrow. This arrow will move to any location onthe presentation slide that is tapped by the presenter.

720: A progressive revelation function that covers portions of thepresentation slide to prevent its display. The first tap on the screensets the starting vertical location and each successive tap repositionsthe overlay to display more and more of the presentation slide.

722: An eraser tool that erases any annotations on a presentation slide.

724: An undo function that removes each annotation in a reverse order.

726: A color selection tool that selects from among different colors thecolor for future annotation operations.

Annotations can be taking place on the left, right and center monitorsin any particular order; therefore, in a preferred embodiment,annotations are saved every time a presenter navigates away from apresentation slide. For example, slide 14 can be displayed on the leftmonitor 234 and be annotated while slide 13 is displayed on the rightmonitor 238. If the presenter touches the right monitor 238, then theoperating system of computer 204 detects that focus has now shifted tothe right monitor 238 and any further input will be interpreted by theannotation tool associated with that monitor 238. The presentationsoftware also saves any current annotations for slide 14 beforeproceeding. If the presenter then navigates back to slide 14, thecurrent annotations for slide 13 are saved and further input isinterpreted by the annotation tool associated with the left monitor 234.

In a preferred embodiment, the vector graphics files created by eachannotation tool are stored in the “C:\courses” directory. For example,as annotations are made to the slides within presentation file409-Ch05.ppt, a directory 409-Ch05and can be created and populated witha file “xxx” wherein the “xxx” refers to the slide within thatpresentation file.

When the presentation software presents a slide in the preview window602 it can automatically search for the existence of any annotationfiles and automatically augment the slide accordingly. As a result,annotation files can be saved and moved to another computer to augment apresentation from that computer while still utilizing the presentationslides that reside on the second computer. Also, the re-display of anannotated slide is not dependent on the display screen on which theslide was originally annotated. For example, a slide displayed andannotated while on the right display screen can be later recalled fordisplay and dispatched to the left display screen and any previousannotations will be displayed on the left display screen without anyneed for modification.

Returning briefly to the interface screen 600 of FIG. 6, there are twocomplementary icons 622 and 642. These icons, respectively, start ablank slide on the left and right display screens. This blank slide canthen be annotated as desired. In a preferred embodiment, a dialog boxappears that asks for a name for the blank slide and can provide asuggested default name as well. If the newly named slide is not saved asa favorite, then it will be deleted upon ending the currentpresentation. If it is saved, then it will be available for recalllater. In a similar manner, individual slides may be created and copiedinto the “C:\courses” directory and manually added to the favoritesfile. In this manner, additional, extrinsic slides that augment apresentation file can easily be made available for selection and displayduring a pre-scripted presentation.

The presentation system is not limited to presenting viewable contentfrom only a single document file format. The presentation system, forexample, can work with two or more different document file formats suchas PowerPoint presentations and Adobe Acrobat PDF files. In a preferredembodiment, the PowerPoint presentations are used to deliver screens ofinformation in landscape layout, while Acrobat files display informationfrom portrait layout paginated documents.

According to this embodiment, both the PowerPoint and Acrobatpresentations can be treated in exactly the same way by the presentationsystem, including the incorporation of any annotation files associatedwith each screen of the document being displayed. Because of the aspectratio difference between landscape and portrait-documents, there may beinstances in which only two-thirds of a portrait-mode page (e.g., anAcrobat page) is displayed on each screen and projector. The ‘nudge up’buttons 626, 638 on the interface 600 are used to make the lowertwo-thirds of an Acrobat page visible.

The functionality and benefits of the “favorites” mechanism remain thesame for either PowerPoint or Acrobat pages, as both formats can besaved and then recalled for display on any display screen 212, 234, 238.

An exemplary remote control 108 of FIG. 1 is shown in more detail inFIG. 8 as element 800. For example, the remote control 800 can connectto the computer 204 using an input/output port that is not being used byanother component of the system 200. The remote control does not need tohave the entire tool suite that is shown in FIG. 6 but rather caninclude a button 802 for automatically advancing a slide; a button 804for skipping the current preview slide; a button 806 for sending thepreview slide to the right screen; a button 808 for blanking/unblankingthe right screen; a button 810 for blanking/unblanking the left screen;and a button 812 for sending the preview slide to the left screen.

FIG. 9 depicts an alternative presentation system arrangement 900 ascompared to the system 100 of FIG. 1 or the system 200 of FIG. 2.However, there are many common components in each of the systems thathave previously been described in detail with respect to the earlierfigures. Accordingly, so as not to obscure the differences between thevarious arrangements, detailed description of those common featuresshared by each arrangement are not repeated with reference to FIG. 9.Instead, the distinctions between the various arrangements arehighlighted and a detailed description of those differences is provided.

In FIG. 9, the computer 902 controls the data flows and presentationmaterials used by the other components; This computer 902 includes acommunications port 904 for interfacing with input devices such astrackball, keyboards (standard or miniature) and mice. The computer 902provides a graphical user interface, via the video port 908, on thetouch screen 918 to assist a presenter or instructor in controlling apresentation. The communications port 906 receives feedback from thetouch screen 918 such as provided by a stylus.

While any conventional touch screen terminal can be used, an exemplarytouch screen 918 is the 18-inch Wacom Cintiq computer-aided designterminal. This particular terminal includes a tailored stylus thatallows a user to rest their hand on the display screen while writing.This functionality improves the accuracy of annotation.

Video ports 910 and 912 provide the video output for display on theright and left projectors 924, 926. As described earlier, thepresentation system alternates or otherwise controls the electronicdisplay of information by directing display screens to a particularprojector under the control of a presenter using the graphical userinterface provided on touch screen 918.

As other video sources 920 may be occasionally displayed on eitherprojector 924 or 926, the video outputs from the ports 910 and 912 arerouted through a video switch 922 that is controlled via signals from aport 914 on the computer 902. Thus, using the graphical user interfaceto produce control signals from the port 914, the presenter can controlthe directing of slides from video ports 910 and 912 as well as controlthe selection and deselection of alternate video signals from sources920.

Although the video switch 922 is depicted as a single n×2 video switch(i.e., having n inputs and 2 outputs), other configurations, such as apair of 2×1 switches, could also be used. Alternatively, the switch 922can be omitted if the projectors 924 and 926 have multiple input ports.In this alternative, the control signal from port 914 would directlycontrol the appropriate projector to display a selected input.

One significant difference between the system 900 of FIG. 9 and theearlier-described systems is that a single touch screen 918 is usedinstead of a center display 104 and left and right displays 110 a, 110b. To accommodate this simplification, the presentation control softwarerunning on the computer 902 uses a multi-windowed, tabbed interface onthe single touch screen 918.

FIG. 10 depicts an exemplary graphical user interface 1000 for thesingle screen alternative of FIG. 9. The interface 1000 includes a maindisplay area 1024 that includes three sub-windows 1006, 1008, 1010. Thecenter window 1006 displays the current instructor's screen that will bedirected to either the left or right projector. The left window 1008displays the currently displayed left projector screen and the rightwindow 1010 displays the currently displayed right projector screen.

The interface 1000 includes the icon tool bar 1004 across the top aswell as respective left and right toolbars 1020 and 1022 along eachside. These toolbars provide functionality as described previously thatpermit a presenter to, for example, direct pages to one screen or theother, skip pages, send blank pages, scroll pages jump between pages,select an alternative video source (e.g., a demo computer), and save orselect “favorites”. Along the top of the interface 1000 is the memoryjogger bar 1002 that displays a brief note about the current instructorscreen 1006.

Along the bottom of the interface 1000 are three tabs 1012-1016corresponding to a respective one of the sub windows in the display area1024. Using the left screen tab 1012, a user can select the leftprojector screen for annotation, and using the right screen tab 1010,the user can select the right projector screen for annotation. Using thecenter tab 1014, the user can return to the composite, multi-windowedscreen 1024 shown in FIG. 10.

The graphical user interface 1000 is displayed on the touch screendisplay 918 that provides feedback to the computer 902 through thecommunications port 906. Annotations and toolbar selections can beperformed from the composite screen 1024; however, selecting one of thecurrent display screens 1008, 1010 will allow finer control over anyannotations. One of the display screens can be selected using theappropriate tab (1012 or 1016) or simply by selecting one of the windows(1008 or 1010) using one of the input devices 916.

FIG. 11 depicts an exemplary snapshot 1100 of the graphical userinterface 1000 once the left screen 1008 (for example) is selected forannotation. As shown in FIG. 11, the screen tabs 1012-1016 remain at thebottom of the snapshot 1100 and the left screen side toolbar 1020remains to the left side of the snapshot 1100. Instead of the compositescreen 1024, however, the current left projector screen is displayed1008 so as to nearly fill the display area. Along the top of thesnapshot 1100 is the memory jogger area 1102 for the current leftprojector screen and near the bottom of the snapshot 1100 is theannotation toolbar 1104. The details of the annotation toolbar weredescribed earlier with respect to FIG. 7, and its icons provide toolsand functions that simplify annotating the currently displayed screen.These annotations appear in real time during the presentation in orderto enhance the dynamic nature of a presentation provided using thesystem 900.

The layout of the snapshot 1100 and the interface 1000 are exemplary innature. Of course, other functionally equivalent toolbars, screenlayout, icon labels, and features are contemplated within additionalembodiments of the present invention.

There is much similarity between the tools and facilities available inthe alternative presentation system of FIGS. 9-12 and those describedand explained with respect to FIGS. 1-8. However, in the alternativearrangement, there is preferably one touch screen for controlling thethree video outputs. Thus, a presenter switches from image to image onthe touch screen rather than annotating three separate touch screens.

A typical use of this system would start with selecting the “Chapter”button to load a chapter of multiple screens for presentation. Using theinstructor screen as the control interface for the presentationapplication, pages are sent alternately left and right using the leftand right buttons of the toolbar. Alternatively, default preferencescould be stored that automatically control how the screens are directedfor presentation. To annotate a particular projected image, theannotation tools can be used on the smaller display windows found on theinstructor screen interface of FIG. 10. Alternatively, should thepresenter select one of the current projector screens (by clicking onthe window or using the tab button), then the corresponding left orright screen image is magnified to nearly fill the touch screen area asshown in FIG. 11. This allows annotation to be applied much moreaccurately to the magnified window. Once any annotation is completed,clicking on the “Instructor Screen” tab will cause the composite,multi-windowed instructor screen to reappear so that the presentationcan continue.

FIGS. 12, 13 and 14 illustrate a “zoom” functionality that can beutilized within the multi-display environment of FIG. 1 or thesingle-screen display environment of FIG. 9. As the functionality issubstantially the same in both environments the exemplary embodimentdepicted in FIGS. 12-14 is simply that of the single screen displayenvironment. In addition to the scenarios described earlier involvingmultiple slides displayed on the left and right side screens, the zoomfunctionality permits displaying a single slide, in different ways, onboth the right and left side screens.

FIG. 12 depicts a screen view of an instructor screen as indicated bythe tab 1210 at the bottom of the screen. As previously described, thisscreen displays a next slide 1204 and also a copy 1206 of what is beingdisplayed on the right-hand screen and a copy 1208 of what is beingdisplayed on the left-hand screen.

In the particular situation depicted in FIG. 12, known as split-screenmode, a current slide is displayed on both the left-hand and right-handscreens. For example, the window 1206 shows the upper portion of thecurrent slide while the window 1208 shows the lower portion of thecurrent slide. There is some overlap portion 1212 that appears in bothwindows and this portion 1212 can be shaded or otherwise visuallydistinguished to help an observer recognize that this information is inboth windows.

A “zoom” tool 1202 is available to the presenter that allows furthercontrol of how the current slide is displayed. FIG. 13 depicts how thedisplay windows change once the zoom tool 1202 is selected. While thewindow 1204 remains the same, the display windows 1304 and 1302 changetheir behavior.

In the right-hand window 1302, the entire current slide is shown asbeing displayed on the right side display screen. In a preferredembodiment, the left side display screen is blank. However, theleft-hand window 1304 can include helpful instructions for the presenterthat suggest, for example, that a portion of the slide should beselected so as to permit “zooming-in”. In practice, the presenter wouldthen use the select tool 1306 to select a portion of the slide displayedin window 1302. This tool preferably utilizes a click-and-drag operationthat is familiar to most computer users. Additionally, in otherembodiments, a different slide may be present in the left and right-handscreens. Using the zoom tool on either screen causes the oppositeprojected image to be replaced with a zoomed copy of the selected area.

FIG. 14 depicts how the windows change once a portion 1404 of the slide1402 has been selected with the tool 1306. In particular, the left sidedisplay screen is no longer blank but displays a “zoomed-in” portion ofthe slide as shown in the left-hand window 1406. The display of theslide in window 1402 also changes to include some visual cues, such asshading, that highlight the selected portion 1404. The window 1204continues to show the next slide in the presentation.

As for annotation, both the left-hand window 1406 and the right-handwindow 1402 can be annotated using the tools and methods describedearlier. FIG. 15 illustrates a screen shot of one embodiment of thepresent invention that includes features not yet described in previousembodiments.

Similar to previous screen shots of the presentation control interface,FIG. 15 includes a sub-window 1506 for displaying the next slide in thepresentation as well as sub-windows 1504, 1508 for displaying the slidespresently being displayed on the left and right projections screens,respectively.

During a presentation, the presenter may become aware of an error orother inappropriate content on a slide. Additionally, from audiencefeedback, the presenter may learn of additional information that mightbe added to a slide. In these instances, the presentation system andmethod, herein described, provides a tool 1502 to mark a slide, duringthe presentation, as needing correction.

While the slide is still being displayed during the presentation, thepresenter can use the annotation tool to create annotations 1510 a, 1510b that are depicted on the window 1508 but preferably not on the displayscreen seen by the audience. Alternatively, the presenter can simplyclick on the tool 1502 to mark the slide for later revision. After aslide has been marked, the presentation can continue until it iscompleted. The instructor can then review the slides and annotate anymarked slides at a more convenient time. To assist the presenter inrecognizing which slides have been marked using tool 1502, a visualindicator 1512 can be added to each such slide.

If the computer system (e.g., 902) on which the presentation controlinterface executes is connected to a network, then the slides which aremarked and annotated by the presenter can easily be forwarded to otherindividuals to perform correction or updating of the slides. In apreferred embodiment, the presentation control system automaticallylocates recently annotated slides and forwards them on for updating.

Another feature of the screen shot 1500 involves a timeline trackingindicator 1514. This indicator 1514 displays an indication of how thecurrent presentation is progressing in comparison to a pre-set timeline.To help the presenter maintain a predetermined schedule during thepresentation, each slide can have associated meta-information thatindicates how long the slide should preferably be displayed during thepresentation. As discussed earlier, each slide can have associatedmetadata such as screen preference and memory-jogger text, etc. Thetiming meta-information, now being described, is used to determine howclosely the presenter is following the expected timeline of apresentation. Such metadata can be displayed on the presenter's imagesof the slides as they are displayed to aid the presenter with their timemanagement.

The logical flow diagram of FIG. 16 depicts an exemplary method forproviding timeline information to a presenter. Once a presentation isstarted, a clock or timer is started in step 1602. Next a slide isretrieved for presentation; in step 1604, and timing information for theslide is extracted, in step 1606, regarding when that slide should bedisplayed during the presentation. Eventually, in step 1608, thepresenter will display the slide to the audience. At this point in timea timestamp is created indicating when that particular slide wasdisplayed based on the running clock or timer. If associated timingmeta-information cannot be located for a presentation, the system cansimply use a default time for each slide instead of generating an errormessage or otherwise affecting the presentation.

In step 1610, the time that has expired since the start of thepresentation (i.e., the timestamp from the previous step) is compared tothe expected time that the slide should have been displayed. A number ofalternatives are contemplated for performing this comparison. Forexample, each slide can have meta-information that indicates how long itshould be displayed during a presentation. In this instance, then, theexpected display time for a slide is simply the sum of all the previousslides “display times”. Alternatively, the meta-information could be apoint-in-time relative to the start of the presentation (e.g., 5:15minutes). In this instance, the expected display time is explicitlyidentified and does not have to be calculated using information aboutthe previous slides. Other functionally equivalent methods for trackingwhen a slide is presented and when it should have been presented arealso contemplated by the present invention.

In step 1612, the timestamp information (see step 1608) is stored in alog file, either remotely or locally, in order to record the progress ofthe presentation as it is occurring. If a slide is skipped, then thislog file can preferably include such an annotation rather than anassociated timestamp.

An indicator of the comparison that occurred in step 1610 can bedisplayed for the presenter in step 1616. As shown in FIG. 15, a gauge1514 indicating timing information about the current presentation isprovided on the interface 1500 for the presenter. Although this timinginformation can be displayed in a variety of equivalent graphicalformats, FIG. 15 depicts one exemplary display indicator 1514. In thisexample, a time bar includes region 1516 (which can be red) thatindicates being behind schedule, a center region 1517 (which can beblack) that indicates being substantially on schedule, and anotherregion 1518 (which can be green) that indicates being ahead of schedule.A bar 1519 is also present which overlays the appropriate region 1516,1517, 1518 of the timebar depending on how the presentation isprogressing relative to the predetermined schedule. As shown, the text“2 minutes ahead” can also be present to more specifically indicate thetimeline information to the presenter.

If there are more slides in the presentation, then a decision in step1618 returns logical flow to step 1604 so that the next slide can beretrieved. Once the presentation is over, however, the accumulatedtimestamp information, such as the log file, can be further analyzed.For example, the log file can be automatically forwarded in step 1614 toa remote location in order to determine how closely the presentationfollowed the prescribed timeline. Historical data can thus be collectedto permit such activities as evaluating presenters' conformance oradjusting the prescribed timelines.

Additionally, the “Tools” menu bar can include an option fortimeline-related information that provides more detailed information toa presenter. For example, one option may be to display a list of allremaining slides in the presentation along with their expected displaytimes. Another option may be to display a list of exercises thataccompany the presentation and a calculation, based on the remainingtime and the remaining slides, of how much time can be allocated by thepresenter to the hands-on exercises.

The stylus 1520, or highlighter tool, is typically used by the presenterto highlight portions of a slide during its presentation. Usuallymanipulation of the stylus 1520 after it has been selected isaccomplished using a mouse or other input device attached to thecomputer 902 (see FIG. 9). In addition to such an input device, recentadvances in wireless technologies permit an additional mouse or otherinput device to be located remotely from the computer 902. For example,the presenter can carry a hand-held input device that controls thestylus 1520 though an interface with any of the interface ports on thecomputer 902. In this manner, the presenter can highlight and otherwiseannotate a slide while being physically located somewhere else than atthe keyboard of the computer 902.

In addition to the system functionality already described, alternativeembodiments of the present invention are contemplated as well. Some ofthese embodiments include additional tools and features that areavailable to a presenter using the described system. For example, FIG.17 depicts an interface screen 1700 that is similar to that alreadydescribed with respect to FIG. 10 but includes additional, oralternative, interface elements. Those interface elements that havealready been described in detail are not discussed further below so asnot to obscure the additional features of the interface screen 1700.

In this exemplary screen 1700, a navigation menu bar 1702 and anannotation menu bar 1704 are arranged near the top of the screen 1700.These menu bars, respectively, allow a user to control the slidepresentation and edit the slide's content as described earlier. Inaddition, these menu bars include other tools that are described in moredetail later.

Similar to previously described interface screens, the interface screen1700 includes a preview window 1706, a left-screen window 1708, and aright-screen window 1710. Also displayed on this screen 1700 is achapter window 1712 and a slide window 1714. According to certainembodiments, the chapter window 1712 list the chapters or modules thatare included in a current course being presented. To aid the presenter,the current chapter may be highlighted or otherwise visually denoted asshown in window 1712. The slide window 1714 shows an ordered list of theslides that are included in the current chapter and may include a visualindication of which slide is the current slide in the preview window1706.

The chapter window 1712 is preferably displayed on the interface screen1700 at all times while the appearance of the slide window 1714 may varydepending on the actions of the presenter. For example, the presentermay select tools from the navigation menu bar 1702 that displays a listof favorites or displays a list of available files to open. In theseinstances, the different lists may overlay on top of the slide window1714 or simply replace the slide window 1714 on the display screen 1700.One example of files that a presenter may want to display are PDF files.Embodiments of the present invention allow a presenter to open PDFdocuments and display them in either window. For example, a presentationmay include a PDF file that is being displayed of the left-displaywindow 1708 while a different PDF file from the favorites list isselected for display on the right-display window 1710. Of course, otherformats of files can be displayed in the two display windows as well.

As previously described, a presenter controls a presentation by sendingslides from the preview window 1706 to either the left-display window1708 or the right-display window 1710. There may be some instances inwhich the presenter may want both display windows 1708, 1710 to displaywhat is in the preview window 1706. Accordingly, a tool 1728 is providedin the navigation tool bar 1702 that allows a presenter to easily sendthe slide in the preview window 1706 to both the left-display window1708 and the right-display window 1710 simultaneously.

To accompany the three different windows 1706-1710, there arethree-different regions around the periphery of the interface screen1700 that allow a presenter to further manipulate the various slides ofa presentation. The placement of these areas, or regions, correspond tothe different display windows within the screen 1700. For example,region 1716 corresponds to the preview window 1706, region 1718corresponds to the left-screen window 1708, and region 1720 correspondsto the right-screen window 1710. As described earlier, the interfaceelements available in these regions allow the presenter to create ablank page on a corresponding display screen, black out a screen, showdifferent portions of a slide, add a slide to a favorites list, etc. Inaddition, each region includes an interface element to mark a slide ashaving an error or a “bug”. According to the exemplary screen 1700, theregion 1716 for the preview slide includes its own interface element1738 for marking slides that have errors. This element 1738 permits apresenter to flag a slide as having an error before it is sent to theleft or right screen; thus, minimizing any interruption of apresentation that might have been caused by sending slides to the rightor left screen and then flagging them as having errors.

In conjunction with slides being able to be marked as having errors, thenavigation tool bar 1702 further includes an element 1736 that allows alist of slides that are marked as having errors to be displayed. Whenthe presenter selects this menu element 1736, a screen similar to thatof FIG. 18 is displayed within the interface screen 1700. The screen1802 is preferably a separate window that opens and lists those slidesthat include errors or that need correcting.

In addition to flagging slides in the preview window 1706 as having anerror, a presenter may also annotate a slide in the preview window 1706.According to the touch-screen technology described earlier herein, apresenter has a variety of input methods to change the focus of thesystem to the preview window 1706. Once this window is selected, thenthe elements of the annotation menu bar 1704 can be used to annotate theappropriate slide. Accordingly, as described previously, a presenter cancontinue to send a slide to a screen and then annotate it in view of theaudience or, alternatively, a slide can be annotated while in thepreview window 1706 and then sent to a display screen. Additionally, analready-annotated slide that is sent to one of the display window can befurthered annotated as well in view of the audience.

One set of annotation tools that are helpful to presenters are the“arrow” tools 1740, 1742 shown in the tool bar 1704 of FIG. 17. Apresenter selects one of the tools 1740, 1742 and then moves the cursorto either the left or right display screens 1708, 1710. As the cursormoves around the appropriate display screen, an arrow is displayed thatacts like a pointer to draw the audience's attention to a particularportion of the slide being presented. Depending on the layout of theslide and the item of interest, a presenter may choose the left-facingarrow 1740 or the right-facing arrow 1742 based on which one would bemore effective in the given situation. In some embodiments, the arrowwill move with the cursor movement; or, in alternative embodiments, thepresenter can click on a portion of the displayed slide to anchor thearrow onto the slide. In the latter embodiment, once one arrow has beenanchored on a slide, additional arrow tools may be selected andutilized.

Another useful set of tools available to presenters that allow attentionto be drawn to a particular area of a slide are the two highlightingtools 1732, 1734 of the annotation menu bar 1704. The exemplary slide ofFIG. 22 depicts the difference in the two different highlighting tools.The region 2202 shows how the marquee highlighter 1732 highlightsselected portions of a slides while the region 2204 depicts the morefree-form highlighting nature available with the chisel pointhighlighter 1734. As shown, both tools may be used on the same slidedepending on how the presenter wants to highlight certain portions ofthe slide.

FIG. 23 illustrates the use of another annotation tool. The arrow tool1730 allows a presenter to annotate a slide (in any of the threewindows) by drawing an arrow 2306 on the slide 2302. According to oneembodiment, the thickness of the arrow and arrowhead are fixed.Alternatively, while a default line-width and arrowhead size may beautomatically provided, these parameters can be adjusted by a presenterto control the appearance of arrows that are drawn using this tool 1730.Much like the line-drawing tool 712 described earlier, a presenterselects a starting and ending point for the line but, in this case, theend point is displayed on the slide as having an arrowhead.Additionally, once an arrow (e.g., 2308) is complete, the presenter canstart typing text to automatically cause the tool to open a text box andcause the text to appear in the box 2304 located near the arrow 2308.

Once a slide is annotated, manipulation of the annotations are sometimesneeded and a variety of tools may be provided to assist a presenter inmanaging annotations to the slides. For example a tool 1726 may be usedto select one or more annotations on a slide. For example, the tool 1726can be used in the familiar click-and-drag method to draw a polygonaround annotations to be selected, or alternatively, the tool 1726 maybemore free-form in nature to allow a user to draw irregular shapes toencompass selected annotations. Once selected, the annotations can bemanipulated en masse such as by moving them or deleting them. Anotherexample would be to select an annotation using the tool 1726 and thenchanging the annotation such as, for example, by editing the text in atext box annotation on the slide. Whether annotations are deleted, oredited, one at a time or as a group, a re-do tool 1744 allows apresenter to add back annotations in the reverse order of their removalor editing. Thus, a history of annotations and their removal ismaintained by the system such that each selection of the re-do tool 1744successively re-instates the most previously removed annotation.

Referring back to FIG. 17, directly below the chapter window 1712 is anaccompanying region 1722 that optionally provides additional informationabout the current chapter. For example, this region 1722, as shown, mayshow suggested times for when the chapter is to be presented during apresentation and when the chapter should be completed during apresentation. These suggested times may include not only “hour” and“minute” information but also “day” information if the presentation isscheduled to last multiple days. To further enhance this information, alink may be provided that, when selected, displays time information forall chapters. For example, the exemplary screen of FIG. 25 includes awindow 2500 that lists each chapter and its scheduled presentationtimes. Various details can be simultaneously displayed as well. In theexample window 2500, the chapters are further delineated intosub-portions such that the sub-portions (e.g., Exercises) of eachchapter are listed separately with their associated time periods aswell. One of ordinary skill will appreciate that many different formatsand detail levels can be displayed for the presenter's benefit withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention.

Because the timing of a presentation is sometimes an important aspect tomonitor, additional time-related tools are included within embodimentsof the present invention to aid a presenter. For example, the exemplaryscreen 2400 of FIG. 24 includes an overlay window 2402 that displays howlong a particular presentation portion is. In this example, an exerciseslide 2400 (that would display in the left-display screen, theright-display screen, or both) is shown that the presenter may displaywhile the audience performs an exercise. The overlay window 2402displays the length of the exercise to help the presenter remember thatinformation. Although the overlay screen 2402 may be viewable on thedisplay screens that the audience actually sees, in a preferredembodiment, the overlay screen 2402 is only visible on the touch displayscreen being used by the presenter.

The timer tool 1724 of the navigation menu bar 1702 is another usefultool available to the presenter. Selection of the timer 1724 causes ascreen 2600, as shown in FIG. 26, to open on the presenter's system. Thescreen 2600 allows a presenter to set and monitor a timer. Exemplaryinformation would include such items as the current time, the endingpoint of the timer and a dynamically changing display that counts downthe remaining time. The screen 2602 also includes elements 2604 thatallow changing or resetting the timer parameters and elements 2602 thatallow the timer to be sent to the left, right or both display screens.

FIG. 20 depicts an alternative full-page display screen 2000 as comparedto that described with respect to FIG. 11. While similar in manyrespects (such as, for example, the behavior of the tabs 2002 at thebottom of the screen), the alternative display screen 2000 differs inthat the navigation tool bar 1702 and the annotation tool bar 1704remain at the top of the screen 2000 and the additional tool region 1720appears at the right portion of the screen 2000. If the left screen tabhad been selected, then the additional tool region would appear in theleft portion of the screen. The placement and arrangement of theseelements 1702, 1704, 1720 is substantially the same as that of theexemplary screen 1700 of FIG. 17. Thus, a presenter is provided with afamiliar user interface regardless of whether they are working infull-screen mode or multi-screen mode.

As described earlier, a blank slide can be created during a presentationso as to provide the presenter with a way to draw or write informationwithout being obscured by other information on a slide. FIG. 21 depictsfeatures of one embodiment of the present invention that opens a blankslide 2100 with a title region 2102 and a editable region 2104. In theeditable region 2104, text or drawings can be added using the annotationtools as described earlier. However, according to this embodiment, thetitle region 2102 allows a presenter to name the blank slide with ameaningful label. Preferably, when a presenter opens a blank page, thecursor is positioned in the title region 2102 ready for the presenter totype in a name for the blank page. If the presenter moves the cursordirectly to the editable region 2104, then a default naming scheme(e.g., sheet 1, sheet 2, . . . ) could be used to name the blank pagebut the presenter continues to have an opportunity to move the cursorback to the title region 2102 and edit that information. A number ofalternatives exist for saving the information of the edited blank page.One example would be to save the blank page as a favorite therebyallowing the text in the title region 2102 to be seen in the favoriteslist and selected by a presenter. Another example would be to save theedited blank page in another program's format such as a GIF file or anindustry standard document format. An additional example would be tosave the edited blank page in a format native to the presentation systemsuch that it is available to be retrieved during other presentations aswell.

In certain embodiments described herein, manipulation of slides andinformation within a presentation causes slides to have additionalinformation associated with them. For example, the annotationinformation is associated with each slide. Also information such aswhich slide was the most-recently accessed slide in a chapter ismaintained as well. FIG. 19 depicts a screen 1902 that allows apresenter additional control over the slides of a chapter. Inparticular, a button 1904 is provided that allows a chapter to be reset.Using this feature, a presenter is able to remove annotations from allslides at once within a chapter without having to open each slide andmanually remove the annotations. Additionally, by resetting the chapter,the presenter is able to ensure that when that chapter is opened at somelater time, the first page of that chapter is presented instead of themost recently accessed page from that chapter. Access to this screen1902 can be provided a number of different way but is preferably offeredthrough an option under one of the menu items (such as Tools) availableon the main navigation menu bar 1702.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have beendisclosed, it is to be understood that various different modificationsare possible and are contemplated within the true spirit and scope ofthe appended claims. There is no intention, therefore, of limitations tothe exact abstract or disclosure herein presented.

1. A method for providing an electronic presentation of a plurality ofslides using multiple display screens, comprising the steps of:providing a presentation control interface on a center display screen;displaying a slide, from among the plurality of slides, in a previewwindow within the presentation control interface; receiving input viathe presentation control interface indicating whether to direct theslide to a right display screen or a left display screen; dispatchingthe slide for display on the indicated display screen; displayingsimultaneously with the slide in the preview window within thepresentation control interface, a first window corresponding to anyslide currently displayed on the right display screen and a secondwindow corresponding to any slide currently displayed on the leftdisplay screen, and before dispatching the slide for display, adding oneor more annotations to the slide.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein thestep of adding one or more annotations includes the step of marking theslide to indicate the slide is to be revised.
 3. The method of claim 1,wherein at least some of the one or more annotations are visible withinthe preview window but are invisible on the indicated display screenafter the slide is dispatched for display.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein at least some of the one or more annotations are visible withinthe preview window and are visible on the indicated display screen afterthe slide is dispatched for display.
 5. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising the step of: adding an additional annotation to the slideafter the slide is dispatched for display.
 6. The method of claim 1,further comprising the steps of: outputting the slide as right-sidevideo data if the slide is dispatched to the right display screen; andoutputting the slide as left-side video data if the slide is directed tothe left display screen; selecting one of the first window and secondwindow via the presentation control interface; receiving input from adevice located remotely from the presentation control interfaces;adjusting the right-side video data based on the received input, if theselected window corresponds to the right display screen; and adjustingthe left-side video data based on the received input, if the selectedwindow corresponds to the left display screen.
 7. A system providingelectronic presentations comprising: a plurality of presentation slidesstored in a first memory accessible by a programmable computer; a firstdisplay screen coupled with the programmable computer and having a firstvideo input signal; a second display screen coupled with theprogrammable computer and having a second video input signal; a thirddisplay screen coupled with the programmable computer and having a thirdvideo input signal; a presentation control application stored in asecond memory accessible by the programmable computer; and theprogrammable computer being configured to execute the presentationcontrol application to provide an interface, displayed on the thirddisplay screen, by which each of the plurality of slides is dispatchedfor display to either one of the first or second display screens,wherein said interface is configured to simultaneously display: a firstwindow displaying a first image corresponding to the first video inputsignal, a second window displaying a second image corresponding to thesecond video signal, and a third window displaying an image of a nextpresentation slide; the presentation control application furtherconfigured to modify the next presentation slide based on input receivedfrom an input device in communication with the programmable computer. 8.The system of claim 7, wherein the input indicates the next presentationslide is to be revised.
 9. The system of claim 7, wherein the inputincludes one or more annotations to add to the next presentation slide.10. The system of claim 9, wherein at least some of the one or moreannotations are visible within the interface but invisible when the nextpresentation slide is dispatched for display to one of the displayscreens.
 11. The system of claim 9, wherein at least some of the one ormore annotations are visible within the interface and when the nextpresentation slide is dispatched for display to one of the displayscreens.
 12. A method for providing an electronic presentation of aplurality of slides using multiple display screens, comprising the stepsof: providing a presentation control interface on a center displayscreen; displaying a slide, from among the plurality of slides, in apreview window within the presentation control interface; receivinginput via the presentation control interface indicating whether todirect the slide to a right display screen or a left display screen;dispatching the slide for display on the indicated display screen; in afirst operating mode, displaying simultaneously with the slide in thepreview window within the presentation control interface, a first windowcorresponding to any slide currently displayed on the right displayscreen and a second window corresponding to any slide currentlydisplayed on the left display screen, and providing a set of annotationtools within the presentation control interface configured to modify aselected slide within any of the preview window, the first window, andthe second window.
 13. The method of claim 12, wherein using the set ofannotation tools is configured to add a plurality of annotations to theselected slide.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein, the set ofannotation tools is configured to select more than one of theannotations.
 15. The method of claim 13, wherein the set of annotationtools is configured to delete more than one of the plurality ofannotations.
 16. The method of claim 13, wherein the set of annotationtools is configured to move more than one of the plurality ofannotations.
 17. The method of claim 13, wherein the set of annotationtools is configured to successively delete the annotations from theselected slide and to optionally restore one or more of the deletedannotations to the selected slide in reverse order of deletion.
 18. Themethod of claim 12, wherein the set of annotation tools comprises atleast two different tools to highlight portions of the selected slide.19. The method of claim 12, wherein the set of annotation tools includestwo, opposite facing arrows that are movably displayed on the selectedslide.
 20. The method of claim 12, wherein the set of annotation toolsincludes a tool configured to drawing an arrow on the selected slide.21. The method of claim 20, wherein the tool for drawing an arrow isfurther configured to associate an editable text window with the arrow.22. The method of claim 12, further comprising the step of: based on thereceived input, simultaneously dispatching the slide for display on boththe right display screen and the left display screen.
 23. The method ofclaim 12, further comprising the steps of: opening an editable page inone of the preview window, the first window, or the second window;receiving additional input via the presentation control interfaceindicating a label to associate with the editable page; and storing theeditable page in a format accessible by the presentation controlinterface.
 24. The method of claim 23, wherein the step of storingfurther includes the steps of: selecting a format type from among aplurality of formats; and converting the editable page into the selectedformat type.
 25. The method of claim 12, wherein a first PDF slide isdisplayed in the first window and a second PDF slide is displayed in thesecond window.
 26. The method of claim 12, further comprising the stepsof: in a second operating mode, displaying within the presentationcontrol interface a substantially full screen display of one of thefirst window or the second window; and receiving input to switch betweenthe first and second operating modes, wherein in either operating mode,a plurality of interface elements available to a user via thepresentation control interface are presented in a substantially similarlocation and arrangement.
 27. A system providing electronicpresentations comprising: a plurality of presentation slides stored in afirst memory accessible by a programmable computer; a first displayscreen coupled with the programmable computer and having a first videoinput signal; a second display screen coupled with the programmablecomputer and having a second video input signal; a third display screencoupled with the programmable computer and having a third video inputsignal; a presentation control application stored in a second memoryaccessible by the programmable computer; and the programmable computerbeing configured to execute the presentation control application toprovide an interface, displayed on the third display screen, by whicheach of the plurality of slides is dispatched for display to one of thefirst or second display screens, wherein, in a first operating mode,said interface is configured to simultaneously display: a first windowdisplaying a first image corresponding to the first video input signalfor a first slide, a second window displaying a second imagecorresponding to the second video signal for a second slide, and a thirdwindow displaying an image of a next presentation slide; thepresentation control application further configured to provide withinthe interface a set of annotations tools for modifying a selected slidefrom among the first slide, the second slide, and the next presentationslide.
 28. The system of claim 27, wherein the set of annotation toolsis configured to select and operate on more than one annotation at atime.
 29. The system of claim 27, wherein the interface is furtherconfigured to simultaneously dispatch a particular slide to display onboth the first and second display screens.
 30. The system of claim 27,wherein, in a second operating mode, the interface is configured todisplay a substantially full screen display of one of the first windowor the second window such that in either operating mode, a plurality ofinterface elements available to a user via the interface are presentedin a substantially similar location and arrangement.